Shantidas

A Sicilian, also known as “Lanza del Vasto,” who worked with Gandhi and was granted the name “servant of peace.” He attempted to organize a Gandhian ashram-like community in 1948, and was finally successful in his efforts to start a self-sufficient community in 1963 known as “La Communauté de l’Arche” at la Borrie Noble. In 1971, he became involved in the Larzac struggle to preserve farmlands from encroachment by the French government’s military agenda. His education and first-hand experience with Gandhi made him a key figure in the movement as an outsider with expertise. The Larzac Satyagraha was one of the few post-Gandhi campaigns of principled nonviolence and involved civil disobedience, demonstrations, hunger strikes, and constructive program. It was ultimately successful in preserving the farmlands.